COUNTRIES AND THEIR NATIONAL SPORTS

[eminenz cw]

Australia-Cricket
Canada-Ice Hockey
China-Table Tennis
England-Cricket and RugbyFootball
India-Hockey
Japan-Ju-Jitsu
Russia-Chess
Scotland-RugbyFootball
Spain-Bull Fighting
USA-Baseball

[Ancient Dragon]

USA
--baseball
--football
--basketball
--ice hockey

[Mike Askew]

England-Cricket and RugbyFootball

What on earth is RugbyFootball?

Or do we mean Rugby and Football?

[Reverend Jim]

Officially, Canada's national sport is lacrosse.

[mike_2000_17]

@Rev: That's the official summer sport. Ice Hockey is the official winter sport.

[Reverend Jim]

Thanks for the correction. I'm going from memories of my old "Know Canada" game that came out in 1967 (yes, I'm that old). I believe at that time we only had one official sport. I guess things change ;P

[<M/>]

America is full of national sports lol...

But i know that Brazil is soccer :)

[<M/>]

Ancient Dragon...
I don't think hockey is one of america's favorite sports...

[<M/>]

I know the world's favorite sporting activity is olympics...

[TonyG_cyprus]

@ MikeyIsMe, Rugby Footbal is actually the correct name for this ancient sport, which has it's origins, I belive, before football (or soccer as it's known in the U.S).

[jalpesh_007]

what is national sports of France and New Zealand?

[happygeek]

Tonygcyprus is correct, Rugby Football is the right name and many Rugby Union clubs have 'RFC' following the name which stands for Rugby Football Club.

Not sure where cricket and rugby come from as national sports for England though. I would have thought, sadly, that first and foremost it is football (soccer) followed by drinking way too much on a Friday night and causing trouble in the high street.

[Mike Askew]

Wow learn something new everyday :)

[<M/>]

jalpesh_007... that's a good google question :)

MikeyIsMe... I learn something new also... oftenly from this forum :)

[Reverend Jim]

Judging from the news here, our national (winter) sport is complaining about the lack of hockey (the season was cancelled due to profit sharing disputes between the players and owners). But because we are now into pre-celebrations for our 100th Grey Cup (North American football) people seem to have taken a holiday from the bitching and whining).

@mike_2000_17 The whining is worse here in Winnipeg because we just got an NHL team back (BFHD*) after years without.

* (big fat hairy deal)

[mike_2000_17]

@mike_2000_17 The whining is worse here in Winnipeg because we just got an NHL team back (BFHD*) after years without.

At least you guys got your team back... we're still waiting / whinning / bitching to get the Nordiques back... it was pretty much a national disaster when they were sold to Colorado and ended up winning the Cup the next season.... ahh.. painful memories.. I've never been a huge hockey fan, but the Canadiens / Nordiques rivalry was awesome. Hopefully, the fact that ice hockey is THE canadian sport will eventually seep through Gary Bettman's thick skull.

[<M/>]

Hockey is interesting (i don't watch it often nor is it my favorite sport)... everytime I go watch a game on TV... i tend to watch the games that have a brawl involved... is that normal?

[mike_2000_17]

i tend to watch the games that have a brawl involved... is that normal?

Not so much anymore (stricter rules, and more suspensions, as opposed to just having a penalty or being sent to the locker-room). Unless you are watching some semi-professional leagues. Our local semi-professional league (Ligue de Hockey Junior Majeur du Québec, or LHJMQ) is notorious for being just a pretext to have boxing matches on the ice. And I'm sure many local / provincial leagues in Canada are the same. They literally have some players designated to do the fighting (to fight the designated players from the other team), while the others (normal players who just want to play at this semi-professional level) fill the time between the brawls by playing some hockey. People even take bets on the different fights that we all know are inevitable in any given game, kinda like unlicensed boxing matches. Basically, it's a spectacle that combines hockey, boxing and freezing cold wooden seats... fun for the whole family.. ;)

But, of course, hockey is supposed to be rough around the edges ;). But as long as players stick to the rules (legal tackles, e.g., with the shoulder or hip), and aren't too vicious, it's a fun game, but as I said, I'm not a huge fan. I find it too slow, and not inventive enough. On ice, I would watch a Bandy match any time over a hockey match (Bandy basically takes the rules of soccer (football) and puts it on ice with a small ball and sticks for the players. The game is very fast, no-contact, 11 players and inventive plays).

At least, with hockey, you're not watching a diving / injury-simulation competition like in soccer (football). I played soccer for 12 years or so (until I was 19 or so), that's a lot of sweat, tears and blood, and I hate seeing all those "pros" diving and whinning all the time. When you've played for a long time, you know what kinds of hits do hurt for real, and which don't, so their acting and whinning is so blatantly obvious that it makes it hard to enjoy watching the games, because if any of them cared to win the game, honorably, they wouldn't spend a second lying / rolling on the ground after a fall, I know I never did, even when it was clearly foul-play, I would just roll back on my feet and keep on going until I heard a whistle, if I heard a whistle. Injuries are dealt with when the game is over, unless you can't stand on your feet anymore. That's how I always played and I hate seeing people being paid to do the opposite. Begging for free-kicks is a shameful way to win a game. End of rant.

[<M/>]

Mike_2000_17... you really know your sports :)

and I hate seeing all those "pros" diving and whinning all the time

I agree with you. I have been doing martial arts and basketball for a few years and its disappointing to see pros whine but it's fun in martial arts where they say they can pummel everyone and they end up getting pummeled :)...

When you've played for a long time, you know what kinds of hits do hurt for real, and which don't, so their acting and whinning is so blatantly obvious that it makes it hard to enjoy watching the games, because if any of them cared to win the game, honorably, they wouldn't spend a second lying / rolling on the ground after a fall, I know I never did, even when it was clearly foul-play, I would just roll back on my feet and keep on going until I heard a whistle, if I heard a whistle. Injuries are dealt with when the game is over, unless you can't stand on your feet anymore. That's how I always played and I hate seeing people being paid to do the opposite. Begging for free-kicks is a shameful way to win a game. End of rant.

Lets be honest... not everyone has great sportsmanship :)

[Lardmeister]

Golf anyone? Or is it Underwater Basket Weaving on TV?